A Blog About Online Gaming and Entertainment Regulations

On February 4, 2019, the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (“NASPL”) issued a statement responding to the Department of Justice’s January 14, 2019, opinion regarding the Wire Act of 1961. In its statement, the NASPL hints that the DOJ failed to consider the effects its latest Wire Act opinion would have on state lotteries.
The NASPL is a non-profit trade association that represents the 52 state and provincial lottery jurisdictions throughout North America. Every year, U.S. lotteries bring in over $23 billion to support worthy causes within their jurisdictions ranging from economic development to education. That the DOJ’s new interpretation of the Wire Act threatens U.S. lottery systems means that states and territories face losing big money for these programs.
In its statement, NASPL first points out that the 2011 DOJ opinion regarding the Wire Act – which stated that the Wire Act only prohibited interstate sports wagering – set in motion efforts by the various states and territories to improve their lottery infrastructure, sales, and customer... Read more

On Jan. 14, 2019, the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion reversing its 2011 position on the Wire Act and sports betting, contradicting not just itself but decisions by at least two District Courts and dicta by the U.S. Supreme Court by maintaining that the Wire Act prohibits all interstate wagering… Read More

The Michigan legislature has passed a trio of bills that would legalize and regulate online gaming. If these bills are signed into law, Michigan’s three commercial casinos and 24 tribal casinos will soon offer players sports betting, online poker, and online casino games. In addition, these bills will pave the way for sports betting… Read More

Once adamantly opposed to the idea of legal sports betting, professional sports leagues are now hurrying to play catch-up in order to profit from the burgeoning sports betting market. On Wednesday, the National Basketball Association (“NBA”) issued a release announcing its “first betting data partnerships in the U.S.” with sports data companies Sportradar and Genius… Read More

More good news for sports betting operators exploring U.S. markets: the Indiana Supreme Court has upheld the “newsworthy value” of sports player stats. The ruling will make it harder for leagues and players to exercise control over (or to extract rents from) the distribution of player data. The case, Daniels v. FanDuel, was brought by… Read More

By all accounts, a bill for legalized sports betting in D.C. (“The Sports Wagering Lottery Amendment Act of 2018”) was well-received last week by the City Council, but the byzantine process by which it might become a law leaves plenty of opportunities for mischief. On Wednesday, Councilman Jack Evans introduced legislation with the support of… Read More

Congratulations, you won a sports bet! What happens now? In the five states where sports betting is now legal, any qualifying individual who places and wins a sports bet can exchange their winning ticket for payment. That means any individual who can prove they are over 21 through an in-person check or the latest digital… Read More

It’s a showdown in Texas over the legality of daily fantasy sports (“DFS”) contests under Texas law. But it’s a showdown only for show, it seems. The drama over the legality of DFS in Texas began on January 19, 2016, when Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton unilaterally issued an opinion letter declaring fantasy sports illegal… Read More

With online sports betting and gaming now legal in New Jersey, many businesses are seeking to jump into this flourishing industry. However, the regulations require that any company seeking to offer this kind of entertainment be associated with a land-based casino in the state, and that kind of association requires a specific legal status. Companies… Read More

Now that states have the right to decide whether to allow sports betting within their borders, the floodgates have opened: numerous states are passing bills so that this form of entertainment can start generating revenue within their borders. Because many consumers will want to engage in this kind of online gaming on their mobile devices,… Read More